Nick Faldo: TaylorMade huckster?

First of all, I like Nick Faldo and think he’s doing a good job for The Golf Channel and CBS. All those critics who say he should tone down his irreverence are humor-less drones. His humor injects some much-needed irreverence in the game, which has very little.

But, I have to say his about his on-air endorsement of TaylorMade on the Golf Channel during the Accenture Match Play Championships.

It stinks, Nicks. It smells.

Faldo used to be with Nike, but signed with TaylorMade a few weeks ago. On the air, Faldo sang the praises of the TaylorMade ball and criticized Nike as being basically a ball only the pros should use and that only skilled players should use it.

Forget that it may be true. It wasn’t Faldo’s place to say it on the air. Let an impartial observer make that judgment.

Faldo later apologized and Nike issued a statement.

“…These comments were all the more inappropriate having come just days after with TaylorMade-Adidas,” said Nike spokesperson Beth Gast. “He has apologized on air and we consider this isolated incident as closed.”

No they don’t, and it’s hypocritical to say they do. Nike is the behemoth of golf marketing and you can bet they won’t forget.

This is a big strike against Faldo, as far as I’m concerned. He’s still one of the best analysts, in my opinion, but he’d better not go shooting off his mouth again as a paid huckster.

Or he will have to face my withering critique.